Life Fitness, Schiller Park, IL, debuted several product variations and applications at the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association trade show last month.

On the equipment side, Life Fitness featured three new customizable, modular configurations of its multipurpose training system Synrgy360. The expansion to the Synrgy360 line offers more scalable solutions for facilities, especially smaller clubs that needed a smaller footprint on the product.

"The Life Fitness Synrgy360 and synergy training model that we introduced drew interest from facilities of all types around the world," Dan Wille, vice president of global marketing and product development for Life Fitness, said in a press release. "To accommodate the demand for equipment that would suit both large and small facilities, we've continued to develop new configurations that will support ranging training needs."

The smaller configurations include the Synrgy360XM, which includes six available training spaces that can accommodate multiple users per space. The Synrgy360XS features four training spaces. The Synrgy360T configuration is the smallest and allows for placement against a wall.

Hammer Strength, a Life Fitness-owned performance brand of strength equipment, introduced HD Elite, its most durable rack line built for extreme training conditions available with new custom-made options for coaches.

This modular line of racks—which includes half-racks, single racks, power-racks and multi-racks—includes 38 options and accessories. Those options include the Power Pivot attachment, which locks Olympic bars into place for rotation exercises, adjustable band pegs and nine pull-up bar options, including the patent-pending Rotating Chin-Up Handle that adjusts to multiple positions for more natural movement. Complementary storage selections are also available, and there is a "Sumo Base" option that provides a wider space giving taller athletes more room to perform.

Applications

Not all of Life Fitness' introductions involved new equipment. The company opened its product platform to developers last October, but at IHRSA, Life Fitness introduced LFopen, an open application programming interface (API). Life Fitness has made portions of its product code accessible to all developers around the world, without restrictions. This truly open integration benefits fitness facility owners looking to provide their customers with greater access to content and personalization, app developers and exercisers.

Using LFopen, app makers can tap into consumers' desires for fitness technology to build an endless spectrum of personalized fitness applications that work directly with Life Fitness workout equipment. Life Fitness' open API gives customers and developers access to the same API Life Fitness used to develop its own Life Fitness app and tracking website, LFconnect, with no restrictions or partnerships involved.

One app available on LFopen is the free LFconnect mobile app from Life Fitness. The app allows users to automatically track calories burned, allows for manual strength tracking, offers GPS and allows users to access custom workouts on Life Fitness treadmills, ellipticals, bikes and other cardio equipment.

The LFconnect app is an extension of the brand's LFconnect website, lfconnect.com, which allows users to choose their preferred workouts, fitness goals and machine settings from the comfort of their home so that personalized options can be instantly accessed at the gym. The app is available for both Apple iOS and Andoid mobile platforms, and it syncs with any Life Fitness cardio equipment featuring an Engage or Discover console, which can be found in approximately 4,500 gyms around the world. The app supports 11 languages. In addition, it is compatible with in-home Life Fitness cardio machines featuring a Track console and the entire Life Fitness Platinum Club Series line with Engage consoles.

Life Fitness also announced an alliance with SoFit, a social gaming application that uses social networks, real-world rewards, fitness and charity partners to motivate users to stay active year round.SoFit Version 2.0, scheduled for release in spring/summer 2013, will feature the live integration with thousands of Life Fitness machines.

SoFit's newly added Challenges feature allows users to join in-app activities that reflect real-world charity events and fitness training efforts. Version 1.5, now live on the App Store - live on Google Play for Andriod users shortly – features the first SoFit-sponsored charity Challenge.

To help celebrate this partnership, SoFit is donating $1 for every mile logged in the Augie's Quest to Cure ALS Challenge on SoFit up to $5,000. Life Fitness will match SoFit's donation in honor of the company's co-founder, Augie Nieto, and his quest to find a cure for ALS. Nieto was diagnosed with ALS in 2005.

The Life FItness team was able to raise $3,972 in just seven hours for Augie's Quest at IHRSA this year. At the show, Life Fitness Academy trainers rotated their time throughout the day on an Elevation Series Discover treadmill, logging miles and raising funds with the SoFit app, according to the company.